“Knowing Christ is the best thing that has ever happened to me, although winning the US Open was a pretty good second.”
Harry’s Game (The autobiography of Harry Gregg)
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Harry Gregg, Mainstream, 2002. ISBN 1840183667
Harry Gregg played over 200 times for Manchester United (1957-66) and gained 25 For Northern Ireland. He is probably best known for surviving the Munich Air disaster in 1958, in which several Manchester United players died. Gregg risked his own life to save others. As the book describes, he carried the trauma of Munich throughout his life.In 1958 against all the odds, Northern Ireland qualified for the finals of the 1958 World Cup and reached the quarterfinals. The book gives Gregg’s inside story of the greatest football achievement of his country.
The book records the last words of Billy Whelan, a Christian footballer killed at Munich: “well, is this is the time, then I’m ready”. In terms of Gregg’s own faith, he is quoted “I have always been a religious man. In fact, it was something which helped me through Munich”. The book describes (p86) his own dilemma as to whether it was OK for him to play in the World Cup on a Sunday: “I’d been brought up to believe in the age-old tradition of strict Sunday observance. Apart from attending church, just about everything else on the Sabbath was a real no-no”. But when a friend died in 1962 his reaction was “if that’s Jesus Christ, you can keep him”.
His description of reaching the cup final and how players got tickets tickets that they were allowed to sell – which represented a significant financial advantage to them – shows how the game has changed since his day, as does the recorded conversation between new signing, Noel Cantwell, and Manager Matt Busby. Cantwell on the day of his debut asked Busby in what formation Manchester United would line up and how he wanted Cantwell to play. Busby’s answer was that Cantwell had been signed for his ability and that his job was just to go out and play! No tactical instruction necessary.
An Important book for his eye witness account of Munich as well as the 1958 World Cup.